Following his bantamweight title win in the main event of UFC 306, the promotion was clearly looking to set Merab Dvalishvili up for his first title defense.
Joe Rogan asked the new champion what he thought about the match-up with Umar Nurmagomedov, which is likely next for him.
Despite the broadcast capturing Nurmagomedov’s reaction live from the Sphere, Dvalishvili didn’t answer the question that had been posed to him.
He instead spoke about having a conversation with Dana White first and later, in his post-fight press conference, stated once again that in his opinion, Deiveson Figueiredo is more deserving of the next title shot.
Kamaru Usman Advises Merab Dvalishvili To Face Umar Nurmagomedov Challenge Head-On
In an interview with Dvalishvili on the Pound 4 Pound podcast, Kamaru Usman had offered some words of advice to the title challenger before UFC 306 got underway.
The former welterweight champion said that the Georgian fighter should look to capitalize on his time as champion by securing the biggest fights possible, meaning that he should welcome a fight with Nurmagomedov rather than pointing to alternatives.
During his post-event recap alongside Henry Cejudo, Usman once again stressed why he thinks that Dvalishvili should be pushing for this fight.
Having already made the case that it’s the biggest fight out there for him right now, Usman also believes that this kind of challenge could elevate the new champion.
Every great fighter needs great rivals to push themselves further than before and “The Nigerian Nightmare” believes that Nurmagomedov offers that.
He referenced his own welterweight title reign and how his two tough fights against Colby Covington were highly significant moments in his career that helped take him to another level in terms of popularity and influence within the organisation.
“Merab is not afraid but I know he’s worried about a guy like Umar and sometimes those are the guys that really put you on that next level. Merab might come out there and look like freaking the best we’ve ever seen. So you, and I needed that dance partner. Colby Covington gave me that and so that’s what Merab, at this point, I think if I had any advice for Merab, it’s too embrace that. It’s too embrace that. You’re right, when they did ask him that question, he kinda danced around it.”
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